Reviews by Hendry:

Flavor starts out with a hefty English toffee blast followed by a moderate amount of balanced bitter dank hops. Alcohol well hidden for the abv.

Mouthfeel is creamy and smooth, low level of carbonation.

I continue to question the freshness of New Zealand exports every time I pick one up, and can't help but feel this would have been much more vibrant had it been fresher. I feel like I get a better representation of New Zealand hops when they are brewed here in the States and offered fresh rather than ending up in a warehouse waiting to be shipped.Decent drinkability, but my sample was too malt forward for my taste. Stands to reason that since the California IPAs are typically 2-3 months old by the time they hit the shelves in Vermont, that this import is likely over 6 months old and not a good representation of what this ale once was. Moving forward,undated beer, especially imports, are better left on the shelf for the next guy and not for me. With so many choices offered that offer reliable bottle dating and freshness, this bottle has proven to be another waste of the $8 plunge. (1,218 characters)

Taste & Mouthfeel: carbonation intense enough that it stings isn't helping, but could be worse; diverges significantly from the aroma with caramelized apple flavours briefly showing at the start, quickly giving way to fairly unique hop notes - pine, but light, with touches of fruit - want to say citrus, but feels more exotic; great length and finish; carbonation calms over time, not a hindrance; some bubblegum; midway through it's really becoming well balanced between the resin and caramelized apple/pear flavours

Overall: interesting stuff going on here, and different; they've done a good job of highlighting a rarely seen hop variety in North America; just a few kinks to be worked out, but definitely worth a try (964 characters)

500ml bottle, a cool new find at the local liquor monopoly chain. Can't really see how this entry is retired - it's been reviewed at least every few months for the past couple of years. Anyways, brewed (thoroughly, apparently) with the Rakau hop - that's a new one for me.

This beer pours a hazy, quite dark bronzed amber hue, with two fingers of dense, bubbly eggshell white head, which leaves a few instances of Denmark-esque peninsular lace around the glass as it slowly but surely fades away.

It smells of bittersweet tropical fruit - pineapple, mango, and papaya - cooked strawberry and nectarine, caramel/toffee malt, musty, earthy hops, and a touch of warming alcohol. Lots going on already, it would seem. The taste is more bitter, yet juicy grapefruit and pineapple, warmed peaches, mandarin orange, a somewhat laid-back caramel/toffee pudding malt, and a further leafy, piney hop assertiveness. The alcohol does well to keep a respectful distance.

The carbonation is fairly restrained, but still duly supportive, the body a sturdy medium-full weight, and generally smooth, but with the usual caveat when big-boy hops are given free reign. It finishes off-dry, the kind of doughy caramel malt holding fast against the still siege-happy hops.

A genuinely bitter and hoppy DIPA, the trick here being the complexity gleaned from a single hop varietal. Given the region, and even city of origin, I was expecting huge Sauvignon Blanc allusions, but other than the grapefruit, that wasn't the case. Robust and zesty fruit, subtle pine, and an agreeably dazed malt. What's not to like? (1,591 characters)

Bang on DIPA. In your face hops, and these hops were citrus tangy, with some white wine character in the taste. Big foamy head. A bit boozy. Good drinkability on taste.LCBO treat.Worth seeking out for hop fans. Fuller mouthfeel, somewhat palate erasing/numbing. (261 characters)

Found this at Belmont Station and figured I'd pick up a bottle to quaff while booking the details for my upcoming trip to NZ. Poured from the 500ml bottle into a Maudite snifter. Body is a cloudy deep orange color, topped by a small, creamy, off-white head. Lots of suspended solids. Aroma of sweet, bready malt mixed with a big dose of citrusy hops. Prominent notes of biscuit and grapefruit are offset by subtler hints of grass and sweet pineapple. Palate is mostly sweet malt up front, with the citrusy notes of the hops coming through on the swallow. Nice notes of biscuit and pineapple again. A big flourish of bitterness emerges on the finish but doesn't linger long. Instead, a mildly chalky character of the malt hangs around for a couple of moments after the swallow. Body is full, just a touch creamy, but actually a little thin for a beer of this magnitude (both bitterness and strength). A very nice effort, with a different hop profile that is a nice change of pace from what we get here in the northern hemisphere. (1,031 characters)

Smell is suprisingly citrussy. Some pine in there as well. Much less present than expected is that typical new zealand hop sweet fruity quality, but it's there in a perfumy peach scent. Also some rich caramel and syrupy notes from the malt. Very nice. Could be more intense perhaps.

Flavour is a little sweeter than the nose suggests and the stone fruit qualities of the hops are more present, though some pine and citrus are evident especially in the after taste. Sweetness has a light caramel flavour to it. Bitterness is alarmingly soft. It is certainly there, and not in a small way - however the actual nature of the bitterness is incredibly smooth.

Mouthfeel is interesting, quite low carbonation which I think works well. I would like it to either feel lighter, or be obviously more creamy in it's texture.

Overall, good but lacks the robust strength of flavour found in the best examples of the style. (1,005 characters)

Pours a dark amber, with a long-lived 1cm head, much longer-lived than my two earlier pale ales from this brewery in my tasting. The smell is awesome, stinky pine, very strong. On first taste fior some reason I get hints of the smoky sweet flavour of manuka honey. Near the end the sweetish alcohol competes with the bitterness which is a new and interesting flavour balance. This is a very nice beer, would love to compare it to other DIPA as this is the first i've had. (471 characters)

Pours a hazed deep copper in the glass, with 1 ½ fingers of off-white head. This retains with a rich ½ finger, which leaves back a huge creamy cascade of lacing that settles into a ton of spotty froth down the sides of the glass. The aroma smells herbal, earthy, and piney, with softer underlying textures of soft fruit and toasted grains. This is initially pretty nice but as this hits room temp, the alcohol hear comes out in a big way, and starts to dominate the nose with a LOT of spicy alcohol warmth.

An earthy citric bitterness and herbaceous character stands out first in the taste and I’m even getting a smack of tart and zesty lemon flavors coming out as well. A sticky tropical fruitiness mingles with the sweetness of the malts on the edges of the profile, before giving away to more of a toasted graininess in the backend. This finishes resinous, spicy, and dry, with a deep earthy pithiness that lingers on the tongue. The mouthfeel is medium to fuller bodied, with a softer and creamy carbonation that then gets pricklier in the mouth. Like the nose, a good bit of alcohol sweetness and warmth comes out in the body, but it isn’t as bad here and this overall stays fairly smooth for the size.

I was unfamiliar with the Rakau hop and this seemed like a pretty good intro to it, displaying a pleasant combination of fruit, pine, and earth. My only complaint here was the alcohol presence, which seemed to come out a bit more than you would think for an 8.5% beer (especially in the nose). Still though, I felt like I got my moneys worth out of this bottle. I’d be willing to check out another selection from these guys again. (1,686 characters)

Bottle: Poured a bright golden color ale with a large foamy head with OK retention and minimal lacing. Aroma consists of dry bitter hops with light floral notes with light sweet notes that are also perceptible. Taste is also dominated by dry and bitter hoppy notes with light sweet malt notes with very timid floral notes. Body is about average with good carbonation. Another Renaissance beer that fell a bit short in terms of hops punch. (438 characters)

Muscatels, dates and dark fruits even more prominent at first, more reminiscent of a quadrupel or barleywine than an IPA. Shortly after, pine needles, lemon peel and strong resin notes creep up until they absolutely dominate. The eventual bitterness is deceptively high.

Alcohol very apparent; acidity is quite high and almost unpleasant. A pleasant chewiness from the resinous hops.

Drinkability not great for mine. Alcohol seems too high - to the point of dampening the hop and flavour profile. (720 characters)

Appearance - Clear copper colour with a massive size fizzy/frothy beige coloured head. There is an average amount of carbonation showing and there is some good lacing. The head lasted for 5-6 minutes.

Smell - Hops, malts, caramel, apricot, pineapple

Taste & Mouth - There is an average amount of carbonation and I can taste malts, caramel/toffee, and piney hops. There is also some apricot/pineapple fruity notes and a bit of a woodiness. It ends with a sweet mildly hoppy aftertaste.

Overall – A pretty good DIPA that I'm sure would be even better fresh. The booze is well hidden and it has a nice well rounded taste.. a little something for everyone. Kind of like an east meets west DIPA flavour wise. (753 characters)

The very murky rusty orange body screams unfiltered, which means it's conserved every possible bit of hop goodness. A finger's worth of creamy paper white head floats on top, but not for long. This is one heavy looking DIPA!

The nose isn't as pungent as I had anticipated but it is still very intriguing. It's fresh and very floral. A hefty sticky sweet malt backbone is apparent. Biscuit, toffee, and rich bread all come to mind. This is however a DIPA and the hop character does well at asserting itself as such. The characteristic tropical notes of New Zealand hops come streaming through in the form of mango and papaya but it is ripe field strawberries that steal the show. The strawberry character is incredible and leaves me salivating.

The beginning is floral, grassy, and earthy. This hop character quickly spreads itself across the palate before reaching the height of its bitterness where mint leaves and pine assert themselves. The sweet and bready malt character stays at the back of the palate the whole time, letting the hops put on a show. The tropical fruity qualities of the papaya and strawberries hold strong on the middle of the tongue but almost get bulldozed by the bittering quality of the beer.

One of the first things that I noticed was how clean the feel of this 8.5% ABV DIPA was. It's almost exceptional in that regard. It still carries with it a soft creamy feel that's typical of the style.

Overall, a solid offering in the DIPA category coming out of New Zealand. I absolutely loved the nose; it was so inviting with the melange of ripe fruits. Unfortunately, in my opinion, the bittering hops used in this beer overtook a lot of the flavourful qualities of the aroma hops used. Perhaps that comes with the style of beer. If more focus was placed on the flavour of the hops rather than their bittering qualities, this would be an exceptional DIPA in my books. As is, it's still good and I'm glad I tried it! (1,945 characters)

500 mL bottle from the LCBO; best before Nov 30 2013. I loved the Stonecutter scotch ale from these guys when I tried it a few years ago, but I hadn't seen anything else from this brewery on the shelves - until now, that is. As a hophead, I'd be remiss to skip this one, apparently brewed with a native Kiwi hop variety I know nothing about. Served slightly chilled, and poured into a tulip.

Pours a hazy amber-bronze colour, topped with one half-finger of dense, frothy off-white head that melts away within a minute or two. It leaves behind a thin, soapy collar and a few scant smears of lacing. The aroma is fruity and juicy, with lots of pink grapefruit and orange pulp, peaches, passionfruit and some earthy pine sap, with underlying caramel malt notes. There's something to please every hop fan in this bouquet.

Bready malts, toasted biscuits and a slight toffee/molasses sweetness start the flavour off, but these notes are soon swept into oblivion by the intense floral, fruity Rakau hop bill. Grapefruit, peaches and mandarin orange give way to vinous notes, juniper and earthy pine sap, the latter lingering into a long, bitter finish interrupted briefly by a flash of warmth from the ethanol. Bitter, resinous aftertaste, with a somewhat slick, oily mouthfeel. On the hefty side of medium-bodied, with moderate carbonation levels and a smooth feel on the palate.

Final Grade: 4.14, a respectable A-. Renaissance Brewing's Marlborough Pale Ale isn't the most drinkable DIPA I've ever had, but it's definitely one of the tastier ones. The alcohol becomes more prominent as this one warms, but it integrates nicely with the powerful, earthy bitterness of the Rakau hops - so I consider the added heat a feature, rather than something to find quarrel with. A solid brew any way you slice it - and given the difficulty of finding quality DIPAs in these parts, I'd definitely consider it worth another pick up in the future. Worth a try for sure, and I hope to try a few more of Renaissance's brews before the local stock runs out. (2,040 characters)

No freshness date'- I'm surprised I bought it, but glad I did.While I would say this isn't the freshest example of this beer it still holds together as an interesting brew.

Nose is of dusty, raisins and dried, oxidised fruits with a caramel background. Definitely not what you'd expect from a DIPA but not unpleasant. On the palate the alcohol has started to come through quite a bit. It's almost like a Tokay, fortified wine feel. That being alcohol and sweet dried fruits.

A somewhat unique taste, even if it's not in it's prime drinking window or how the brewer intended it to be interpreted. (599 characters)